living islam _ Islamic tradition

http://www.iiie.net/Brochures/Brochure-21.html

Women's Liberation Through Islam

by Mary Ali and Anjum Ali

Today people think that women are liberated in the West and that the Women's
liberation movement began in the 20th century. Actually, the women's liberation
movement was not begun by women but was revealed by God to a man in the seventh
century by the name of Muhammad (Peace be upon him), who is known as the
last Prophet of Islam. The Qur'an and the Traditions of the Prophet (Hadith
or Sunnah) are the sources from which every Muslim woman derives her rights
and duties.

Human Rights

Islam, fourteen centuries ago, made women equally accountable to God in glorifying
and worshipping Him ­ setting no limits on her moral progress. Also,
Islam established a woman's equality in her humanity with men, In the Qur'an,
in the first verse of the chapter entitled "Women", God says,

"O mankind! Be careful of your duty toward your Lord who created you from
a single soul and from it its mate and from them both have spread abroad
a multitude of men and women. Be careful of your duty toward Allah in Whom
you claim (your rights) of one another, and towards the wombs (that bore
you). Lo! Allah has been a Watcher over you." (4:1)

Since men and women both came from the same essence, they are equal in their
humanity. Women cannot be by nature evil (as some religions believe) or then
men would be evil also. Similarly, neither gender can be superior because
it would be a contradiction to equality.

Civil Rights

In Islam, a woman has the basic freedoms of choice and expression based on
recognition of her individual personality. First, she is free to choose her
religion. The Qur'an states:

"There is no compulsion in religion. Right has been made distinct from error."
(2:256)

Women are encouraged in Islam to contribute their opinions and ideas. There
are many traditions of the Prophet(S) which indicate women would pose questions
directly to him and offer their opinions concerning religion, economics and
social matters.

A Muslim woman chooses her husband and keeps her name after marriage. A Muslim
woman's testimony is valid in legal disputes. In fact, where women are more
familiar, their evidence is conclusive.

Social Rights

The Prophet(S) said, "seeking knowledge is a mandate for every Muslim (male
and female)". This includes knowledge of the Qur'an and the Hadith as well
as other knowledge. Men and women both have the capacity for learning and
understanding. Since it is also their obligation to promote good behavior
and condemn bad behavior in all spheres of life, Muslim women must acquire
the appropriate education to perform this duty in accordance with their own
natural talents and interests.

While bearing, raising and teaching of children, providing support to her
husband, and maintenance of a home are among the first and very highly regarded
roles for a woman, if she has the skills to work outside the home for the
good of the community, she may do so as long as her family obligations are
met.

Islam recognizes and fosters the natural differences between men and women
despite their equality. Some types of work are more suitable for men and
other types for women. This in no way diminishes either's efforts or benefits.
God will reward both sexes equally for the value of their work, through,
it may not necessarily be the same activity.

Concerning motherhood, the Prophet(S) said, "Heaven lies under the feet of
mothers". This implies that the success of a society can be traced to the
mothers who raised it. The first and greatest influence on a person comes
from the sense of security, affection, and training received from the mother.
Therefore, a woman having children must be educated and conscientious in
order to be a skillful parent.

Political Rights

A right given to Muslim women by God 1400 years ago is the right to vote.
On any public matter, a woman may voice her opinion and participate in politics.
One example, as narrated in the Qur'an (60:12), Muhammad(S) is told that
when the believing women come to him and swear their allegiance to Islam,
he must accept their oath. This established the right of women to select
their leader and publicly declare so. Finally, Islam does not forbid a woman
from holding important positions in government. Abdurrahman Ibn Affan consulted
many women before he recommended Uthman Ibn Affan to be the Caliph.

Economic Rights

The Qur'an states:

"By the creation of the male and female; Verily, (the ends) you strive for
are diverse." (92:3-4)

In these verses, God declares that He created men and women to be different,
with unique roles, functions and skills. As in society, where there is a
division of labor, so too in a family, each member has different responsibilities.
Generally, Islam upholds that women are entrusted with the nurturing role,
and men, with the guardian role. Therefore, women are given the right of
financial support.

The Qur'an an states:

"Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them to
excel others and because they spend of their wealth (for the support of women)."
(4:34)

This guardianship and greater financial responsibility given to men requires
that they provide women with not only monetary support but also physical
protection and kind respectful treatment.

Muslim women have the privilege to earn money, the right to own property,
to enter into legal contracts and to mange all of her assets in any way she
pleases. She can run her own business and no one has any claim on her earnings,
including her husband.

The Qur'an states:

"And in no wise covet those things in which Allah hath bestowed His gifts
more freely on some of you than on others; to men is allotted what they earn,
and to women, what they earn; but ask Allah of His bounty for Allah hath
full knowledge of all things." (4:32)

A woman inherits from her relatives. The Qur'an states:

"For men there is a share in what parents and relatives leave, and for women
there is a share of what parents and relatives leave, whether it be little
or much ­ an ordained share." (4:7)

Rights of a Wife

The Qur'an states:

"And among His signs is that He created for you mates from among yourselves
that you may live in tranquility with them, and He has put love and mercy
between you; Verily, in that are signs for people who reflect." (30:21)

Marriage is therefore not just a physical or emotional necessity but, in
fact, a sign from God! It is a relationship of mutual rights and obligations
based on divine guidance. God created men and women with complimentary natures
and, in the Qur'an, He laid out a system of laws to support harmonious interaction
between the sexes.

"...They are your garments and you are their garments." (2:187)

Clothing provides physical protection and covers the beauty and faults of
the body. Likewise, a spouse is viewed this way. Each protects the other
and hides the faults and compliments the characteristics of the spouse. To
foster the love and security that comes with marriage, Muslim wives have
various rights. The first of the wife's rights is to receive mahr, a gift
from the husband, which is part of the marriage contract and required for
the legality of the marriage.

The second right of a wife is maintenance. Despite any wealth she may have,
her husband is obligated to provide her with food, shelter and clothing.
He is not forced, however, to spend beyond his capability and his wife is
not entitled to make unreasonable demands. The Qur'an states

"Let the man of means spend according to his means, and the man whose resources
are restricted, let him spend according to what Allah has given him. Allah
puts no burden on any person beyond what He has given him." (65:7)

God tells us men are guardians over women and are afforded the leadership
in the family. His responsibility for obeying God extends to guiding his
family to obey God at all times.

A wife's rights also extend beyond material needs. She has the right to kind
treatment. The Prophet(S) said,

"The most perfect believers are the best in conduct. And the best of you
are those who are the best to their wives."

God tells us He created mates and put love, mercy and tranquility between
them.

Both men and women have a need for companionship and sexual needs and marriage
is designed to fulfill those needs. For one spouse to deny this satisfaction
to the other, the temptation exists to seek it elsewhere.

Duties of a Wife

With rights come responsibilities. Therefore, wives have certain obligations
to their husbands. The Qur'an states:

"The good women in the absence of their husbands guard their rights as Allah
has enjoined upon them to be guarded."(4:34)

A wife is to keep her husband's secrets and protect their marital privacy.
Issues of intimacy of faults of his that would dishonor him, are not to be
shared by the wife, just as he is expected to guard her honor.

A wife must also guard her husband's property. She must safeguard his home
and possessions, to the best of her ability, from theft or damage. She should
manage the household affairs wisely so as to prevent loss or waste. She should
not allow anyone to enter the house whom her husband dislikes nor incur any
expenses of which her husband disapproves.

A Muslim woman must cooperate and coordinate with her husband. There cannot,
however, be cooperation with a man who is disobedient to God. She should
not fulfill his requests if he wants her to do something unlawful. A husband
also should not take advantage of his wife, but be considerate of her needs
and happiness.

Conclusion

The Qur'an states:

"And it becomes not a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and
His Messenger, Muhammad (S) have decided on an affair (for them), that they
should (after that) claim any say in their affair; and whoso is rebellious
to Allah and His Messenger, he verily goes astray in error manifest," (33:36)

The Muslim woman was given a role, duties and rights 1400 years ago that
most women do not enjoy today, even in the West. These are from God and are
designed to keep balance in society; what may seem unjust or missing in one
place is compensated for or explained in another place. Islam is a complete
way of life.